First group home in state for women veterans approved

Published 11:16 pm, Wednesday, August 11, 2010

The new potential Homes for the Brave women’s facility at 66 Elmwood Ave. in Bridgeport. They are going before the Zoning Board of Appeals Wednesday August 11, 2010 to seek a use waiver to turn the current building, a legal rooming house, into a 17-bed group home. less

The new potential Homes for the Brave women’s facility at 66 Elmwood Ave. in Bridgeport. They are going before the Zoning Board of Appeals Wednesday August 11, 2010 to seek a use waiver to turn the current ... more

The new potential Homes for the Brave women’s facility at 66 Elmwood Ave. in Bridgeport. They are going before the Zoning Board of Appeals Wednesday August 11, 2010 to seek a use waiver to turn the current building, a legal rooming house, into a 17-bed group home. less

The new potential Homes for the Brave women’s facility at 66 Elmwood Ave. in Bridgeport. They are going before the Zoning Board of Appeals Wednesday August 11, 2010 to seek a use waiver to turn the current ... more

BRIDGEPORT -- The Zoning Board of Appeals made history Wednesday night when it approved the first transitional housing facility for women veterans in the state.

"This is huge," said Joy Kiss, executive director of Homes for the Brave, a transitional housing facility for male veterans on Park Avenue. "It's going to be such a plus for Bridgeport. I'm just delighted. We weren't going to give up."

The new 17-bed facility at 66 Elmwood Ave. would house only women veterans and their children under the age of 2, but would operate similarly to the male facility.

"There is such a need for women veteran services right now," said Army veteran Lauren Cust, 28, of Shelton. "The VA (U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs) is really trying, but step by step we'll get there."

Of the approximately 4,000 homeless veterans in the state, about 200 are women. No facilities exist to provide transitional housing and support services for these women. The VA now pays for beds in shelters throughout the state to be set aside for female veterans.

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Several months ago, Homes for the Brave sought approval from both the ZBA and Planning and Zoning Commission to open the facility in a single-family home at 893 Clinton Ave., just a half mile from the Elmwood Avenue site.

A number of West Side residents opposed the group's plan, however, citing an infringement on their single-family and small business neighborhood. Both zoning boards agreed, prompting the veteran organization to file a lawsuit appealing the P&Z's denial.

Raymond Rizio, attorney for Homes for the Brave, said that lawsuit would now be dropped.

"They have been sensitive to our desires," Borres said, "and moved it to an area that I think would be an enhancement to our neighborhood." He noted that the West Side residents were never opposed to the veterans home, just their proposed location.

"We are actually relieved and happy that veterans will get a home," Borres said. "We are happy to say we are in favor of this and we are happy for them."

Several West Side residents said although they felt the group home's proposed site would be an improvement over the unsupervised rooming house now there, they were concerned about the precedent the approval could unwittingly set.

"This does not mean this is an opening to keep opening social services in Bridgeport," said Jasmine Richards, an NRZ member. "We, as taxpayers, are concerned about that."